St Mary's Airport Isles of Scilly Airport Scilly Isles/St Mary's Airport | |||||||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||||||
| Operator | Council of the Isles of Scilly | ||||||||||||||
| Serves | Isles of Scilly | ||||||||||||||
| Location | St Mary's,Isles of Scilly | ||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 116 ft / 35 m | ||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 49°54′48″N006°17′30″W / 49.91333°N 6.29167°W /49.91333; -6.29167 | ||||||||||||||
| Website | www | ||||||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||||||
  EGHE Location in the Isles of Scilly Show map of Isles of Scilly EGHE EGHE (Cornwall) Show map of Cornwall EGHE EGHE (England) Show map of England | |||||||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||||||
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| Helipads | |||||||||||||||
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| Statistics (2024) | |||||||||||||||
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| Sources: UKAIP atNATS[1] Statistics from theUK Civil Aviation Authority[2] | |||||||||||||||
St Mary's Airport orIsles of Scilly Airport (IATA:ISC,ICAO:EGHE) is an airport located 1nautical mile (1.9 km; 1.2 mi) east ofHugh Town onSt Mary's in theIsles of Scilly, to the south west ofCornwall,UK. It is the only fixed-wing airport serving the Isles of Scilly, handling most air traffic to and from the Isles, in addition to a helipad on the island of Tresco. The airport is owned by theDuchy of Cornwall and currently is operated by the Council of the Isles of Scilly.
On 15 September 1937,Olley Air Service's subsidiary Channel Air Ferries started the first scheduled service betweenLand's End and St Mary's, flyingde Havilland Dragons. Initially, however, the planes landed on the St Mary's golf course.[3] St Mary's Airport was first opened in August 1939, after being converted from High Cross Farm.[4]
In 1938, Great Western and Southern Airlines took over Olley Air Service and Channel Air Ferries. It continued the service throughoutWorld War II, during which it replaced the Dragons withde Havilland Dragon Rapides.[5] On 1 February 1947 this operation was taken over byBritish European Airways (BEA).[5] In August 1949 acontrol tower and a passenger waiting room were completed at St Mary's.[6]
On 2 May 1964, BEA replaced its Dragon Rapides on the Land's End route with a singleSikorsky S-61 helicopter, operated byBEA Helicopters. From 1 September 1964 the route was to the newPenzance Heliport. BEA Helicopters later becameBritish Airways Helicopters, and subsequentlyBritish International Helicopters. A second helicopter was eventually added to the service in the summers.[7]
Mayflower Air Services started services to the airport in 1961; this operation was taken over by Scillonian Air Services in 1963, itself taken over byBritish Westpoint Airlines in 1964. Scillonia Airways operated services to the airport from 1966 to 1970. Westward Airways, not to be confused withWestward Airways (Lands End), operated services from 1967 to 1970.Brymon Airways operated services from June 1972 to March 1991,[6] initially withBritten-Norman Islander aircraft, and two years later,de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otters.[4]
In 1975, a new terminal was opened by the then Prime MinisterHarold Wilson.[4]
In 1984,Isles of Scilly Skybus started flights to St Mary's from Land's End, initially freight andcharter. Scheduled services started on 1 April 1987,[6] flying Islanders and, later, Twin Otters.[3]
The current 600-metre (2,000 ft) asphalt runway, 15/33, was built in 1991.[4]
After being in operation for 48 years, the helicopter service between St Mary's and the mainland UK ceased operations in October 2012, leaving Skybus as the sole remaining air link for the Isles of Scilly.[8] A helicopter service operated between Land's End Airport and St. Mary's in summer 2018.[9]
In May 2013, theIsles of Scilly Steamship Company and the Council of the Isles of Scilly submitted a joint bid for finance from theEuropean Regional Development Fund for improvements to the terminal, new lighting and navigational systems and runway resurfacing, together with runway resurfacing at Land's End Airport.[10] In May 2014, theEuropean Commission gave its approval. The upgrades at St Mary's are expected to cost £6.5 million.[11]
The terminal at the airport is open all year round whilst the airport is in operation. It has a buffet, toilets, as well as access to wheelchairs upon request. The airport is used as a landing area for some emergency services such as the HM Coastguard Search and Rescue Aircraft (based out of Newquay Airport) and theCornwall Air Ambulance, as well as being the administrative base for theIsles of Scilly Fire and Rescue Service.[12]
A public footpath passes within a few metres of the southern end of the runway;[13] it is closed by warning lights and bells a few minutes before a take-off or landing is due.[citation needed]
As of July 2020, St Mary's Airport has regular service to the following destinations:
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Isles of Scilly Skybus | Land's End,[14]Newquay[14] Seasonal:Exeter[14] |
| Starspeed | Penzance[15][16][17] |
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Year | Passengers[a] | Passengers % change | Aircraft[b] | Aircraft % change | Freight (tonnes) | Freight % change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 72,291 |  | 8,935 | | 95 | |
| 2022 | 86,846 |  20.1 | 10,381 | 16.2 | 97 | 2.1 |
| 2023 | 69,404 |  20.1 | 8,849 | 14.8 | 111 | 14.4 |
| 2024 | 68,086 | 1.9 | 9,082 | 2.6 | 54 | 51.4 |
| Rank | Airport | Total passengers | Change 2022/23 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Exeter | 8,063 | 31.8% |
| 2 | Newquay | 1,530 | 27.3% |
| 3 | Land's End | n/a | |
| 4 | Penzance | n/a | |
Media related toSt Mary's Airport at Wikimedia Commons
